Originally Posted by DaFace:
One of the biggest misconceptions about EVs is that you need public chargers. I've had our Leaf for 3 years now, and I think I've probably charged 3-4 times total at a public charger. 99% of the time you just plug it in at home. (That said, it's pretty important to install a 220v electric outlet in your garage.)
It's much more important to have public chargers along any road trip routes you take than around your home.
Considering it's not my garage and I don't intend to pay for any upgrades, I guess it's out of the question for now. :-) [Reply]
Originally Posted by vailpass:
What about long range road trips? Or 4-wheeling trips in the desert or the country?
I personally wouldn't do it. I've said before and will say again - if you're a two-car household, having one of them be an EV works great. But unless road trips are a rare thing for you, having access to ONLY an EV is still an inconvenience at best.
Some people think they're the worst of both worlds, but I personally think PHEVs (plug-in hybrid EVs) are a decent compromise. I'm waitlisted for a Rav4 Prime to supplement my wife's Leaf. It gets 40 miles EV but has the gas engine to get you further than that. I'd be able to basically use it as a pure EV around town but still be able to get across I-70 to see family without having to stop every 2 hours. [Reply]
Originally Posted by htismaqe:
Considering it's not my garage and I don't intend to pay for any upgrades, I guess it's out of the question for now. :-)
Yeah, there's zero chance I'd buy an EV without being able to charge at home even if you were surrounded by public chargers. You can kinda sorta get by with 120v charging at home, but only if you're not driving much on a day-to-day basis. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Deberg_1990:
Anyone going to buy the Mustang Mach E? The Mustang that doesn’t really look like a Mustang.
I saw one of those rolling estrogen festivals the other day. Some boomer was doing his part to save the world and looking like a total douche doing it. Horrendous looking vehicle. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
Yeah, there's zero chance I'd buy an EV without being able to charge at home even if you were surrounded by public chargers. You can kinda sorta get by with 120v charging at home, but only if you're not driving much on a day-to-day basis.
Right now I don't drive enough to justify buying any car, let alone an EV. [Reply]
Originally Posted by BWillie:
The whole idea of the Harley is stupid. It's so loud and they jack the handle bars way up. Looks like just a terribly uncomfortable way to ride a motorcycle and they are ****ing annoying. I hate them.
You are such a beta. I grew up loving the sound of a good engine rumble, whether it be from a bike or a hot rod. Don't get me wrong, when I lived in the city, I didn't appreciate the asshole who would go full throttle down my street at 3am every so often.😡 But most bikers are actually nice and very stable people. As for the bars, not all Harleys have ape hangers. Mine doesn't. It looks to me to be very uncomfortable, but to each his own, I guess. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
Yeah, EVs are definitely counterintuitive in a lot of ways. ICEs are pretty efficient when it comes to heating since they largely just use the heat from your engine block. EVs don't have that, so they have to generate it using electricity. They're far more efficient using AC than they are heat.
Kind of similarly, I think EVs tend to get better mileage in the city than they do on the highway since you get a lot of power back from braking.
It takes a while to wrap your mind around it. So to summarize (and over-simplify a bit):
-You don't use public chargers much unless your daily driving is pushing the range of the car. You just charge at home most of the time.
-EVs get worse range (sometimes significantly) in cold conditions.
-EVs get worse range on the highway than the city
Another counterintuitive thing I've run into is that the battery will last a lot longer if you are doing highway vs city. My Prius is at 217k and showing no signs of battery decline, but I commute probably 140 miles per day. I've heard of many dying right around 200k that are city driven. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Lzen:
You are such a beta. I grew up loving the sound of a good engine rumble, whether it be from a bike or a hot rod. Don't get me wrong, when I lived in the city, I didn't appreciate the asshole who would go full throttle down my street at 3am every so often.😡 But most bikers are actually nice and very stable people. As for the bars, not all Harleys have ape hangers. Mine doesn't. It looks to me to be very uncomfortable, but to each his own, I guess.
Riding with ape hangers is like making your self a Sail. I can't imagine riding all day like that. [Reply]
Originally Posted by banyon:
Another counterintuitive thing I've run into is that the battery will last a lot longer if you are doing highway vs city. My Prius is at 217k and showing no signs of battery decline, but I commute probably 140 miles per day. I've heard of many dying right around 200k that are city driven.
Interesting - I hadn't heard that. Our Leaf is 99% a city car, and the battery is holding up at near 100% so far, but we're only at around 50k miles so far (and we're pretty good about not charging when we don't need to or leaving it at 100% all the time). Time will tell when it starts to decline. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
It's not really the electrical systems "warming up." It's that your cabin heater is super inefficient (just like an electric space heater in your house), so it drains the battery fast in cold conditions. Our Leaf has a function where it will turn the heater on at a specific time each day when it's plugged in so that it's nice and toasty for the commute.
But yes, it's an issue. You definitely get lower range on super cold days (and that's not a Ford-specific issue).
Agreed. Most folks don't think of that though and I doubt the car salesman is telling them that either.... [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
Interesting - I hadn't heard that. Our Leaf is 99% a city car, and the battery is holding up at near 100% so far, but we're only at around 50k miles so far (and we're pretty good about not charging when we don't need to or leaving it at 100% all the time). Time will tell when it starts to decline.
Torque app tracks individual cell strength in Prius batteries. Looks like there is something called Leafspy you might want to check out when you are over 100k or so. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
Interesting - I hadn't heard that. Our Leaf is 99% a city car, and the battery is holding up at near 100% so far, but we're only at around 50k miles so far (and we're pretty good about not charging when we don't need to or leaving it at 100% all the time). Time will tell when it starts to decline. Anyway, I badly need this car so I turned to this firm for help since I don't have enough money for the purchase.
What is the most efficient way to charge Model 3 so that its battery could keep the capacity as long as possible? [Reply]
Originally Posted by Kopinto:
What is the most efficient way to charge Model 3 so that its battery could keep the capacity as long as possible?
I can't speak to the Model 3 specifically, but the general gist is that Li-ion batteries last longest if they avoid the extreme ends of the charge spectrum (e.g., <20% or >80%) for extended periods of time. If your capacity is plenty for your daily driving, I'd aim to charge it to 80% and then only plug it in if you're getting toward the low end of the capacity you need.
But that said, you shouldn't go so crazy trying to protect your battery that you end up giving yourself anxiety about running out of range. If you need 100% of the range to do whatever you need to do, charge it to 100%. The difference in battery life isn't as huge as everyone makes it out to be. [Reply]
